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Just Once

Release date: June 30, 2014
What’s better than a bestselling novel? Three for less than the price of one! Elizabeth Boyce’s bestselling Regency trilogy is now available in a limited-time collection at great savings. Enjoy this heartwarming historical saga from a fresh new voice in romance.

Once a Duchess: Isabelle Lockwood, a former duchess accused of adultery and disgraced with a divorce, must face her biggest nemesis to clear her name and start her life again: her former husband, Marshall Lockwood, Duke of Monthwaite, who is beginning to realize he may have made a mistake when he broke her heart. Can two former spouses find their way past the accusations and distrust to reunite?

Once an Heiress: Every scheming leech in London desires Lily Bachman’s hand–and dowry–in marriage, including handsome rogue Ethan Helling. The Viscount Thorburn’s gaming debts leave him eying her fortune. But when the seducer becomes the seduced and a hasty marriage follows, this stubborn couple will learn the true value of love.

Once an Innocent: When his Foreign Office superiors discover a network of French agents near his country home, spy Jordan Atherton quickly devises a house party scheme to cover the influx of his men hunting the enemy. His plea to the Duke of Monthwaite for help in the form of female guests yields Lady Naomi Lockwood, Monthwaite’s younger sister. The trouble is, Naomi soon realizes things are amiss at the estate, and she wants answers. Isolated in a game of intrigue, can they afford to fall in love?

by Elizabeth Boyce

“Sparkling characters, a fast-paced plot, and beautiful descriptions of Regency England made this moving story of love lost and found once again, a book I couldn’t put down. A delicious debut by an author to watch!” — Danelle Harmon, author of The Wild One

“Once an Heiress combines everything readers love about historical romance with a twisting, suspenseful story that will have you on the edge of your seat… I loved every second of Once an Heiress — it had the intrigue I love about historical romance combined with an excellent storyline that kept me on my toes.” — The Romance Reviews

“If you like historical romances with a strong heroine that doesn’t stick to society rules and a scarred hero with a wonderful hidden heart then you will like Once an Heiress by Elizabeth Boyce.” — Harlequin Junkie

“Once an Innocent by Elizabeth Boyce is a fantastic espionage romance that has some surprising action and gripping drama. If you are a 007 fan, you will be entertained by this novel.” — The Romance Reviews

Isabelle Jocelyn Fairfax Lockwood, the former Duchess of Monthwaite, knelt on the stone hearth and prodded the weak fire in the grate of her small cottage in southern Leicestershire. The flames gave a half-hearted attempt to brighten before they settled back to a feeble glow. She blew into the coals. Again, the flames briefly intensified. She held her hands out for warmth, their cracked skin pained by the January chill.

The middle-aged woman’s round cheeks were pink from cold, she noted with a pang of conscience. Bessie wore stout wool stockings under her dress, a shawl, cap, and fingerless gloves. Isabelle wore much the same; her attire was of only marginally better quality. She felt chilled, but she knew the cold did not seep into her bones the way it did Bessie’s. It wasn’t fair to make the woman suffer on account of Isabelle’s thriftiness. “Certainly.”

She rose from the hearth and picked up the dress lying across the back of a chair in the cottage’s parlor. It was a fine gown at odds with the humble abode: sky blue silk with silver embroidery down the long sleeves and around the bottom hem, and seed pearls adorning the neckline. It was a heaven of luxurious elegance, a dress fit for a duchess, and it had several small moth-eaten holes in the skirt. Isabelle had cursed under her breath when she discovered the damage this morning. She had so few nice things left to her name, she’d be damned if this dress would feed those insidious creatures.”

“She settled into the chair near the fire, took up needle and thread, and began carefully repairing the fabric.

“Wouldn’t you like me to do that for you, ma’am?” Bessie hovered beside her, one hand extended. “Such a lovely thing. Where’ve you been keeping it?”

Isabelle flinched inwardly. It was foolish of her to have the dress out where Bessie could see it. She ran the risk of spoiling the false identity she’d cultivated to escape notoriety. “Mrs. Smith,” the parson’s widow, had no business owning such an extravagant gown.

She should have sold it with the rest, she chided herself. Goodness knew she needed the blunt. Alexander was late with her allowance — again. The last money her brother sent in October was nearly gone.

But sentimentality had gotten the best of her. Everything she owned now was simple, serviceable, sensible. She had precious little left to remind her that she was a gentleman’s daughter and, for a short time, a noblewoman.

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